Connected Papers
A visual tool that maps academic papers related to the one you start with, so you can explore a field quickly.
What is Connected Papers?
Connected Papers is a research discovery tool. You enter a paper, and it builds a visual graph of related papers based on how they cite and are cited together, helping you see the landscape of a topic and find important work you might have missed.
Literature reviews often start with a single good paper. Connected Papers takes that paper as a seed and finds others that are closely related, even if they don't cite each other directly, by looking at overlapping citations and references.
The result is a graph where similar papers sit close together. Node size and color give quick visual cues, such as citation count and publication year, so you can spot influential and recent work at a glance.
Two views are especially useful: prior works, which are foundational papers that many papers in the graph cite, and derivative works, which are later papers that cite many papers in the graph. Together they help you trace where a field came from and where it's going.
Key features of Connected Papers
- Similarity graphs: Builds a map of papers related to your seed paper.
- Prior and derivative works: Highlights foundational papers and newer work building on the field.
- Visual cues: Shows citations and publication year through node size and color.
- Paper details: Lets you open abstracts and links for each paper.
- Export: Exports lists for use in reference managers.
What you can use Connected Papers for
- Starting a literature review
- Checking you haven't missed key papers
- Understanding how a research area developed
- Finding recent follow-up work on a classic paper
Pros and considerations
Strengths
- Very fast way to see a field visually
- Finds related papers beyond direct citations
- Simple to use with no setup
Things to check
- It maps papers but doesn't summarize their findings
- Free use is limited per month
- Coverage depends on the underlying academic database
Connected Papers pricing
Freemium. There is a free tier with a limited number of graphs per month and paid plans for heavier use; check the official site for current limits and pricing.
Who Connected Papers is best for
Students and researchers who want a quick visual overview of the literature around a paper.
Independent listing by AI Agent Help, last reviewed October 2026. Features and pricing change; check the official website for the latest details. Spot something out of date? Tell us.
Frequently asked questions
Is Connected Papers an AI tool?
It uses similarity algorithms over citation data rather than a chatbot. It's often grouped with AI research tools because it automates discovery.
Is Connected Papers free?
There's a free tier with a monthly graph limit and paid plans for more use.
Can it summarize papers?
No. Pair it with a reading or summarization tool if you need summaries.